Price of unchecked aggression probed in "The Trojan Women"

The difficult questions of war and the price one pays for unchecked aggression are explored in “The Trojan Women,” playing at Willamette University April 10-26.

The play — staged in a 24’ x 24’ cage — centers on the women of the ruined nation of Troy. Gathered by their conquerors in the aftermath of the Trojan War, the women await their fate even as they mourn their dead.

Written in 415 BCE as Euripides’ public protest against the Peloponnesian War, the play’s intent is to force people to look beyond social justice, nationalism and patriotism to consider what is right and wrong, says director Jonathan Cole.

“This aggressive, hard-hitting, movement-based production will force us to scrape away the grit, to wipe the dirt from our eyes as we look beyond despair to find our humanity,” Cole says.

“Audiences will be unsettled, inspired and moved. They will enter into an environment that is at once foreboding and familiar. They can expect to see an innovative staging that is both reverent and provocative.”

Tickets

“The Trojan Women” is playing in the Willamette University Pelton Theatre from April 11-26, with a preview performance April 10. Thursday through Saturday performances begin at 7:30 p.m., and 2 p.m. matinees are scheduled for April 13, 20 and 26.

General-admission tickets for the preview performance are $8, evening performance tickets are $12, and matinee tickets are $10. Student and senior pricing (65 and older) is $10 for any performance.